Biblical Studies Carnival #225 for February 2025

February is the shortest month, but there was plenty of Biblioblogging. Welcome to the Biblical Studies Carnival for February 2025. Reuven Chaim Klein did a great job with the January 2025 carnival on The Rachack Review. As I always say, I am looking for hosts for the rest of 2025. Contact me via email, plong42@gmail.com if you would like to discuss hosting a Bible Studies Carnival on your blog. I would love to have a host that is more into podcasts than I am.

Jim West will host the carnival for March (due April 1). For April (due May 1),  Hans E Kristensen of Australian Catholic University will host at his blog, Bible Archaeology and History. Hans is a first-time host, so check out his blog (or his papers on academia.edu).

Old Testament

Did Isaac Know He Is Blessing Jacob? Rabbi David J. Zucker wonders who got deceived.

John T. Squires executes justice and righteousness: the glory of the holy God (Ps 99; Transfiguration).

Heather Anne Thiessen studies Exodus 19:1-14 and then reflects on Exodus 19:1-14.

Michael Wilson posts daily at his eponymous blog. An example is Call to Restoration and Hope (Isaiah 1). Go read the whole month, maybe subscribe.

Nijay Gupta gives some suggestions for Studying Early Judaism: The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha.

William Ross celebrated International Septuagint Day (February 8) by giving a list of his publications on the Septuagint. He says he would be happy to send you copies if you do not have access to these journals.

Megan Sauter asks, “Who Were the Maccabees and What Did They Do?”

Archaeology

Hans Kristensen discusses the Twelve Archaeological Finds that Support the Historicity of the Old Testament/ Hebrew Bible.

Nathan Steinmeyer discusses Tax Administration in Roman Caesarea Philippi at Bible History Daily.

Bob MacDonald is at the end of his mega-series: a visual presentation of the Music of the Bible, verse by verse with Scalar Vector Graphic images.  He calls this a “swan song” even though he is only 22% done with the project.

Here’s a news story on the new archaeology display at Ben-Gurion Airport.

Eva Mroczek discusses the deep history of deepfakes and the Dead Sea Scrolls. In other weird DSS news, the Reagan Library adds a rare group of Dead Sea Scrolls to their exhibit including 4Q57 Isaiah Scroll. Anthony Ferguson appreciates 11Q5: A Comparative Look at the Great Psalms Scroll, which is now on display at the Reagan Library.

Jennifer Drummond explains the mystery of the missing pages in the Aleppo Codex.

Monika Amsler at TheTorah.com describes How Ancient Books Were Composed.

Another news story from the Times of Israel:  Hoard of coins illuminates triumphant Maccabee campaign. Good photos of the coins.

New Testament

Peter Montoro IV resolves the Mystery of GA 2776.

James Tabor explains the “Strange” Ending of the Gospel of Mark (and Why It Makes All the Difference).

Heather Anne Thiessen studies Matthew 19:16-30 and then reflects on the passage.

John Nelson surveys seven candidates for the Beloved Disciple.

Peter Goeman at The Bible Sojourner asks, “Does 666 refer to Nero in Revelation 13:18?” I will not spoil the post for you, but no, it’s not Nero. This post has a link to his podcast on YouTube.

James T. Squires on Transformed from death to life: Paul’s theology of glory (2 Cor 3–4; Transfiguration).

Ian Paul explains what Paul’s Christ hymn in Philippians 2 actually tells us. He wonders about the beatitudes in Luke 6, Jesus stilling the storm in Luke 8, and the meaning of the transfiguration in Luke 9.

At the Text & Canon Institute, Markus Bockmuehl and Jacob Rodriguez ask, “What Are the Apocryphal Gospels?”

Marg Mowczko discusses Origen on the Montanist Prophetesses. She says, “Apart from having women as leaders, emphasizing the role of the Holy Spirit and prophecy, and holding to some ideas which many in the broader church regarded as strange, the Montanists’ basic theological beliefs were not heretical.”

B. J. Oropeza revisits the Lord’s Prayer. His focus is on the sixth line, specifically. The word epiousion, “our daily bread.” Spoiler: he thinks I. H. Marshall’s compromise may be right. Read his post to see what that compromise is. Oropeza also asks if God’s Love is Unconditional or Unconditioned.

Michael Bird posted a link to the latest edition of his podcast “Ask N. T. Wright Anything” answering the question, “Was Paul a false apostle?”  This post also includes Michael Bird’s video on the Roman imperial cults and its relevance to the apostle Paul and the Book of Acts.

jayman777 at the Biblical Scholarship blog has a short article on the genre of the Gospel of Mark. Jayman collects statements from several major commentaries. He also did a post on the text of Mark.

Καταπέτασμα posted on Tales from the crypt: The historicity of Pilate’s ransacked tomb at Scribes of the Kingdom.

Michael Bird continues his dialogue with Matt Novenson, Is the Church the New/True Israel?

Book Reviews

Corinne Bonnet, The Names of the Gods in Ancient Mediterranean Religions. Trans. R. Häussler. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2024. (Review by Dominic Dalglish at Bryn Mawr Classical Review).

Claudia Rapp, New Light on Old Manuscripts: The Sinai Palimpsests and Other Advances in Palimpsest Studies. Publications on Byzantine Research, 45. Austrian Academy of Sciences Press, 2023. (Reviewed by Peter Malik at ETC). Open Access

Mark J. Boda and Mary L. Conway, Judges (ZECOT). Zondervan, 2024. (Reviewed by Spencer Robinson).

2024. Michael Morales, Numbers 20–36 (AOTC). Intervarsity, 2024. (Reviewed by Spencer Robinson).

Thomas Kazan, Dirt, Shame, Status: Perspectives on Same-Sex Sexuality in the Bible and the Ancient World. Eerdmans 2024. (Reviewed by Jim West). “This is a tremendously instructive book.  And it addresses a tremendously important question.  I recommend it to one and all.”

Timothy S. Hogue, The Ten Commandments: Monuments of Memory, Belief, and Interpretation. Cambridge Univ. Press, 2023. (Reviewed by Lauren Monroe).

Catherine Hezser, ed. The Routledge Handbook of Jews and Judaism in Late Antiquity. Routledge handbooks. Abingdon; New York: Routledge, 2024. (Reviewed by Elsa Laurenzi Bryn Mawr Classical Review),

Elana Stein Hain, Circumventing the Law: Rabbinic Perspectives on Loopholes and Legal Integrity. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2024. (Reviewed by Rabbi Reuven Chaim Klein at the Rachack Review).

Peter Gurry posted a review of the Wescott-Hort Greek New Testament in the New York Times, published 143 years ago. Imagine the days when the New York Times ran reviews of Greek Bibles!

Culture

James McGrath was led to Jesus by Severance. Not really, but read his Severance, Jesus, and the Soul: A Sci-Fi Thought Experiment. #Spoilers

At the Anxious Bench, Reading in a Streaming Age—On Limits and Academic Publishing, by Assistant Director of Baylor University Press Cade Jarrell.

Christoph Heilig thinks we need to think: The AI Revolution Is Moving Faster Than We Expected—Are We Ready? Not specifically on biblical studies, but Helig’s piece is a good overview of the state of AI in February 2025. That will all change in a month, so read what he has to say now.

Anxious Bencher Daniel K. Williams on The Evangelical Assault on Democratic Institutions.

Peter Goeman, Three Reasons a Biblical View of Gender is Important.

Jim West remembers G. R. Beasley -Murray on the 25^th anniversary of his death.